


of first dates and new beginnings

by myfivemeters



Category: Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Genre: F/M, back at it again with the parentheses, i love peter parker so much, i think i spelled that right this time, i'm so deep in homecoming hell, it's still all fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-12
Updated: 2017-09-12
Packaged: 2018-12-26 21:21:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,694
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12067209
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/myfivemeters/pseuds/myfivemeters
Summary: it wasn’t quite love—close, but not quite. it was new beginnings and excitement for the future. it was the very cusp before love, like standing on the edge of a pool and testing the water before diving in.





	of first dates and new beginnings

**Author's Note:**

> here i am with another thing, i'll post the tumblr post at the end if you wanna be a bro :D as always, feedback is greatly appreciated!!

it was a tuesday.

you thought it would be like any other tuesday in your repetitive schedule—biology, history, stare at peter, algebra, lunch, english, stare at peter a little more, pe (also spent staring at peter because recently his stamina had increased exponentially and the way his face flushed after an amount of sit-ups you had thought to be impossible was all that your mind would think about), and study hall. but it seemed the fates had much more in store for you.

you were at your locker, the cool metal relieving your hot skin. (you had just walked by peter, who had such a funny look on his face when he saw you that it made your stomach do flips as if it were a gymnast.) the warning bell rang and you hastily threw your books in your bag when—

“hey, i meant to—well, i meant to say something earlier, but i had stuff to do and, well, alright, getting to the point, i was wondering if…” peter was suddenly talking to you—or talking at you, more accurately—and the words hardly reached your ears because wow was he attractive when he was flustered.

peter was looking at you expectantly and you realized that you had not heard a word of what he had said. “i’m sorry, what did you—what?”

he looked a little disappointed, like a puppy when refused love, and your heart ached at the thought of you causing his expression. “i was wondering if maybe you wanted to…i don’t know, get dinner? as in, well, as in a date? i understand if you don’t want to, i know you’re a busy person with better things to do and—”

“no!” you interrupted (screamed). the few people left in the halls gave confused glances at the pair of you. “no, peter, i would—gosh, i would love that. you have no idea how much i would love that,” you reassured. his eyes lit up like a christmas tree and your stomach began performing gymnastic routines once again.

he smiled with such fervor and excitement that you raced to take a mental picture because you knew that his expression was possibly the best thing you’d ever seen. “great, that is…wow, i really didn’t expect you to say yes. i will—i’ll, um, pick you up tonight at 7? and by pick you up i mean stand in your apartment lobby, because i don’t have a car. obviously.” you laughed softly and nodded with a shy smile on your face.

“i’ll be there. i mean, of course i’ll be there, because i live there, but—” and peter was hugging you and there was no way your heart wasn’t failing. he felt so warm, so solid, and he smelled like vanilla and fresh cotton (and you wished all of the sudden that there was a candle or an air freshener that you could buy so you’d never forget it) and you knew then that peter parker had captured you in a way that you had never foreseen, had never expected.

“7,” he whispered as he stood back from the hug.

“7.” 

his cheeks were tinged with pink as he backed up and turned around. “7,” he repeated to no one but himself, and when he thought you weren’t looking, he pumped his fist in the air. your smile grew wider until you looked at the clock and realized you were 6 minutes late to your class, but no consequences could get rid of the feeling that had taken root within you.

 

\--  
at exactly 6:49 pm that night you began to freak out at the realization that, yes, you were about to go out on a date with peter parker, the peter parker, and that he was possibly already waiting for you downstairs.

you had allotted yourself an hour to get ready, half of which was spent ransacking your closet on cursing yourself for never keeping cute clothes. when you finally found an outfit, you stood in front of the mirror practicing what you were going to say when you went downstairs (although you knew that none of this practice would matter, because peter turned you into such a tongue-tied mess that you’d be lucky to string a single sentence together downstairs).

at exactly 6:58 you dragged your palms across your clothing in the elevator. your insides twisted with nerves as it dinged at each floor. you considered, for a moment, going back up to your room and possibly hyperventilating for a while, but you remembered peter’s smile and the way it twisted your heart and decided that yes, you would keep going.

(not that you really had a choice. even if any part of you decided to back out, you doubt you’d be able to; you were permanently attracted toward peter and his smile and laugh and stutter, stuck in his gravitational pull like the earth to the sun. and of course he was the sun, so bright and warm and radiant, what else could he be?)

the doors slid open and your head felt jumbled with excitement and nervousness. you rounded the corner and said a silent prayer to whatever power might be listening, and finally you spotted peter. when he saw you, his entire being seemed to light up just because of your presence, causing a warm feeling to melt through your body and relieve your nerves momentarily.

“(y/n), you—you look really nice. i mean, you always look really nice, but you look especially nice, and i should probably stop talking,” peter babbled as you got nearer to him. you gave a shy smile.

“thank you, peter, you look lovely—handsome? handsome. you look handsome.” he returned the smile and finally, finally the nerves trickled away and all you could feel was happiness like you had never known. “well, where are you taking me?”

he nodded, more to himself than to you, and said, “i figured we could go to this thai place may and i go to a lot? unless, well, unless you want to go somewhere else?”  
“that would be wonderful.”

the two of you walked out the lobby and into the night air of queens. it was incredibly peaceful, walking with peter and talking about everything and anything as you made the trek to the restaurant. you laughed as he told a story of his shenanigans with ned, and you were on the brink of tears as he briefly mentioned his uncle.

(it hurt you to see that look on his face, full of grief and sadness and frustration. peter was too young, too bright, too wonderful to ever have to go through that and your chest heaved at the thought of it.)

walking the streets, you grew closer and closer until peter’s knuckles were bumping yours. his skin brushed softly against you, and finally (finally) his fingers intertwined with yours. “is this—is this okay?” he mumbled, and you could already see the red spreading across his cheeks.

“of course it is,” you replied quietly, and he smiled, so sweet and genuine and soft that your heart skipped a beat. you wanted to see that smile again and again and again, over and over until when you closed your eyes you could envision it perfectly.

you arrived at the restaurant, which was small and a little dingy but peter walked in like it was a second home and you figured that was good enough for you. you spent the meal laughing each and every time peter spilled something and talking about your hopes and dreams until your plates were empty and the restaurant had to close. (you wanted to catch this feeling in a jar and keep it close to you, opening it whenever you pleased and remembering the way peter looked at you like you were the only thing that was worth seeing.)

the trek back to your apartment was filled with soft laughter and hands held tight in the late night atmosphere. normally, you were afraid of the city at night, but with peter it seemed to come alive (as did everything with peter, because he managed to breathe life into things you had never acknowledged before) and you decided that you never wanted to be anywhere but by peter’s side ever again.

a period of silence followed your last joke until peter whispered, “i used to think the moon was the most beautiful thing at night but—but now i know that it’s you.”  
your breath caught in your throat as warmth rushed to your cheeks. it seemed so out of character for him, to say something like that so unabashedly, but it made you feel like you were glowing, like you truly were the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. peter was so real and genuine that you couldn’t help but believe in everything he was.

“well, this is my stop,” you reluctantly said in front of your apartment building. “um, can you—could you look to the left and close your eyes, please?” peter immediately did it, because peter was so trusting and caring that he didn’t think about it for a second. you took a deep breath and lightly kissed him on the cheek, pausing a moment to take in the softness of his skin and the way this moment made you feel. “goodnight, peter,” you murmured. with that, you turned and practically ran all the way up to your apartment, forgoing the elevator completely.

by the time you reached your room, you pressed your fingers against your lips, which were tingling with something that you had never experienced. at the same moment, peter parker held his hand to his check and felt the same.

(it wasn’t quite love—close, but not quite. it was new beginnings and excitement for the future. it was the very cusp before love, like standing on the edge of a pool and testing the water before diving in. you didn’t know when you would, but whenever it happened, you’d be ready, because it was peter parker and there was no one else you’d rather experience it with.)


End file.
